You mean to tell me you have never heard of Tak Matsumoto? It’s ok. I had not either until this album dropped into my review pile. Tak Matsumoto is one of the most famous guitar virtuosos in Japan. He was leader of a popular rock band called B'z that sold nearly 60 million albums in Japan. He became so popular Gibson guitars made him their first Asian signature guitar player. Widely regarded as one of the best Japanese guitar players of all time, he assembled his own solo band, Tak Matsumoto Group. Their first album came out last year. It’s a blend of 80's hair metal, glam and hard rock with a touch or two of nu metal and plenty of guitar virtuosity.

From the opening track, you can tell this recording will be of the utmost quality. All the musicians on the disc are well trained and highly experienced. Handling vocal duties is ex-Mr. Big singer Eric Martin. I cannot stress how amazing Martin sounds on this album. Not being familiar with Mr. Big, I hesitate to make comparisons but he really has a spectacular range and timbre on this disc. Jack Blades (Damn Yankees, Night Ranger) is on bass and drum duties are split between Cindy Blackman (Lenny Kravitz) and Brian Tichy (Foreigner, Slash's Snakepit). The production is super-slick and is full of all the bells and whistles that most pop albums have. Overdubs and harmonies are ever present. "Oh, Japan (Our Time is Now)" is the opener and it shows some influence of nu metal with some record scratches during the intro. Luckily, this is the first and last time they appear on the record. There is also some Japanese rapping before the real vocals come in. Martin sounds great and Matsumoto absolutely shreds on guitar. This track was used as the theme song to TV Asahi's sport programs.

The next track, "Everything Passes Away," has some more amazing guitar work and a great melody that is quite infectious. The influence of traditional Japanese music is evident on many tracks and this is no exception. Clear influence is in the keyboard intro which is reminiscent of a shamisen. Several other heavily influenced parts are present on the album including the intro to "The Greatest Show on Earth" which almost enters J-Pop territory in its infectious happiness. It's as if Falconer tried to play a pop song from Japan. The disco beat drumming also adds to it. "Red, White and Bullet Blues" slows things down and throws in some rectified blues standards for good measure. Lyrically, Martin is protesting America's gun culture. It is to be noted that Martin and Blades wrote all the lyrics for the album and Matsumoto focused solely on the music. It pays off with some spectacular tracks and guitar wizardry.

"Wonderland" is a straight up rock track a la Stone Temple Pilots. It's quite catchy and up beat. "Never Good-bye" is an excellent closer. A sort of triumphant ending march with an extra kick. Martin really shines on this track when he bangs out some high notes and nails the chorus well. Matsumoto once again proves his technical prowess on the guitar. What an amazing player! It’s surprising he hasn’t formed a prog band and broken out internationally. The bottom line is that this is a very mainstream rock album that has some excellent touches of metal here and there. Japanese influence also adds some extra spice that propels the music further. TMG1 is slated for a 2005 release in the US.